Hiroshima & Miyajima (21 – 23 Dec. 2010)

I had expected to see a few things here especially as Hiroshima is historically known for being the first place to be bombed with the atomic bomb. However Hiroshima & Miyajima offer so much more. First of all Hiroshima is a calm and peaceful city compared to Tokyo, Osaka & Kyoto. There is good food and friendly people here.

We were lucky to meet a guy from Hiroshima at our hostel who offered to show us, and some Australians from the hostel, around the city. He treated us out to food and drinks, because we were tourists. It is something I really like about Japanese culture. They are very honoured to have visitors come and see there country, that they go out of there way to make you feel welcomed. It is also really relaxing and time saving to have a local person show you around. 

The peace memorial museum and the A-bomb dome is a must see when visiting Hiroshima. The peace memorial museum has a lot to offer, but feels at times little repetitive as you go through the museum. 

The A-bomb dome is the only building that pretty much “survived” the blast. That is that it is still recognisable as a building. The preservation of the building serves as a reminder of the devastation nuclear weapons can inflict on the world.

Miyajima is an island located just off the coast of Hiroshima. This is a breath taking beautiful island. Here you will find the famous floating torii gate, and wild deers that are so friendly that you can pat them. 

I guess you can say the island is “breath taking” in another way. That is that climbing to the top of Mt Misen, the mountain on this island, is exhausting. The hike up the mountain is however worth every step, as the view from the top is just gorgeous.

I had my hopes on returning down the mountain to get a second photo of the floating torii gate at sunset. However the tide became really low at sunset leaving the torii gate just standing on the beach. Not a terrible picture, but not the picture perfect image I had imagined.

Picture of the day: I had to take a picture of this path for cyclists. Most paths go somewhere, while this path just goes around in a circle right in the middle of an intersection.

Osaka (20 – 21 Dec. 2010)

I really didn’t have any site seeing plans for Osaka, because I really did not think there was much to see in Osaka. This however allowed me to focus my photography on other things not so touristy. The largest  Ferris wheel is in Osaka, which I used to get some great pictures of the city by day. In the evening you can find street acts, people gambling at casinos, and of course people sleeping on the metro coming late from work (common in Japan). Other than that Osaka is a big city like Tokyo.

The reason I actually decided to visit Osaka was to try sleeping at a capsule hotel, which I can say is an experience worth trying only once. The problem is not so much the small space, but all the inconveniences of the stay. You place your shoes in a locker after you enter the hotel. You then exchange your shoe locker key for another locker key, which you use to lock your luggage. However the locker is hardly big enough for the luggage most backpackers carry with them. So you have to pay extra to have your luggage kept at the reception. The capsule you sleep in is located in a different area of the hotel, and you aren't allowed to bring your luggage there, which means you have to plan what you may need with you. Then there is the public showers and baths, which is not for the shy. They also don't have any free available electrical current outlets for loading your laptop, phone, etc. You have to pay to borrow a locker for loading. All in all this is more of a stay for the business man/woman who only wants a place to sleep for the night. For a backpacker hostels are more appropriate.

Quiz of the day: In which movie did the group in the picture below preform music?

Kyoto (18 – 20 Dec. 2010)

We arrived late in the evening and realized finding our hostel in Kyoto was a little difficult. So we ended up taking a taxi from the train station.  More and more I experience that if only I had a compass it would be so much easier to find my way around. Also it is just much more easier to find your way when there is daylight.

After our positive experience biking in Takayama, we decided to see the sites in Kyoto by bike. That may have not been the smartest idea. It seems that Kyoto, not surprisingly, is a rather big city to see in just one day (basically the 19th) by bicycle. Most of the sites to see are located on the outskirts of the city, making the bike trip a little long. We also started the day a little late. By the time we got to the Silver Pavilion (Ginkaku-ji), located in north-eastern corner of the city, it was already 16:30. On the plus side the sun sets around 17:00 – 18:00, which for photographer is the perfect time to take landscape photos.

Having to return the bikes by 18:30 we rushed back in the dark desperately trying to locate the bike rental store, just barely making it back on time. Despite not seeing all the major sites in Kyoto, we did manage to see quite a few things along the way, such as the Kyoto International Manga Museum and Imperial Palace (can’t actually see the palace, because it is behind high walls).

One japanese dish I really like is sushi, so in Kyoto we ate at a sushi bar where the sushi comes on a conveyor belt. The best way to be served sushi!

Takayama (16 – 18 Dec. 2010)

After sleeping on the train the last two hours of our journey from Tokyo, we finally arrived around 20:00 in the small town called Takayama in the alps of Japan.

After a big city like Tokyo it was really relaxing to come to the charming town in the Alps. Because the area is not so big it is not easy to find cheap hostels. This meant I had to stay at a more expensive hotel. The experience of the hotel was however really pleasant. The breakfast provided a good range of delicious Japanese food in addition to more western meals. Also proper Japanese indoor clothing was provided for a more comfortable stay.

On the 17^th I spent the day touring the town by renting a bicycle. This was a great way of seeing the sites. The bike I used is the most common bicycles used in Japan, the city style bicycles, with three or no gears, and a basket in the front. On the last day I visited a part of the town used to preserve old houses (kind of like folkemuseum in Oslo).

The biggest disappoint of Takayama, were the ancient ruins on the top a high hill. Getting to this place was far, and to make things worse, when I finally got there, there was nothing. Not a single stone! All that was there was a single picture explain what the building looked like. However the bike trip and the hike was fun!

Fact of the day: In Japan you enter the bus from the back and pay on exiting in the front. The opposite of Norway.

Nagoya (16 Dec. 2010)

To continue onwards to Takayama we needed to change trains at Nagoya. So we spent a couple of hours at Nagoya seeing the site(s). Actually the only thing worth seeing in such short time is Nagoya Castle. Sadly the castle and other near by ancient building were bombed during WWII. Nagoya Castle was reconstructed, but unfortunately the other buildings burned to the ground.

Other than the castle the city is a little dull.

Mt. Fuji (16 Dec. 2010)

The most renowned mountain, or actually volcano, in Japan is Mt. Fuji. Since we were passing the volcano on our way to Nagoya, I thought it would be appropriate to stop at the station nearest to the mountain and take a photo before continuing onwards with our journey.  However when we arrived at Shin-fuji station I realized that taking a photo was just not so easy. From the station there are just to many buildings, towers, and signs destroying the view. In addition the weather was cloudy and so most of the mountain was covered in clouds. As I left the stations, continuing onwards on my train journey, all of a sudden the sky cleared up and Mt. Fuji could be seen in all its glory. Using a polarized filter on my camera, to reduce the window glaze, a snapped the photo I had planed to take.

Tokyo (12 – 16 Dec. 2010)

It goes without saying that Tokyo is a big city. Nevertheless it still is shocking for someone like me to experience just how big it really is. Travelling around Tokyo by subway seems to be the best thing to do as a tourist. It is just too big to walk from the different districts in Tokyo, and difficult to orientate oneself. In many ways Tokyo really does not have a centre. It seems like each district is its own city. There is so much to see that even spending 4 days (the longest time I will be spending at any of the Japanese city) is just not long enough.

The subway is quite good and easy to use. However it is not a good idea to be there during rush-hour as I experienced on my last day. Never in my life have I been so squashed in a train. Luckily it was winter, because the high temperature and bad air in the train is enough to make one almost pass out from exhaustion.

Temperature has been mild, approximately 16 – 7 °C. Some days were rainy while other days were quite sunny. Similar kind of weather one would experience in Oslo during September to October.

The great thing about Tokyo is that there are all sort of different things to see if one has the time. Beautiful building, museums and temples can be found within walking distance from the subway. For those who really like shopping this is definitely the place to be. You can find almost anything here.

Japanese people are really friendly, and will go out of their way to help you if you are lost.

My biggest disappointment was that I didn’t get to see the bay area.

Fact of the day: According to the Japanese calendar we are entering into the year of the rabbit.